Sole-cutting machine and dies



sept. 26, 195o J. F. BARRON 2,523,675

som 'CUTTING MACHINE AND DIES Filed Jan.' 15, 1948 2 sheets-sheet 1 ATI'D RNEYE Sept. 26, 1950 J. F. BARRON SOLE CUTTING MACHINE AND DIES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 15, 1948 INVENTOR. J/wl'a/fofz.

v ev

Patented Sept. '26, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Y j sona-CUTTING MACHINE AND DIES f John F. Barrn, Johnson city, N. Y. Application January 15, 194s, serial No. 2,440

, 1 Claim.

My present invention relatesl generally to die machines of the reciprocating type for cutting sheets of material, andmore specifically to an improved sole cutting machine and dies Vwhich while-well adapted for multiple cutting of sheets of various materials, is especially designed for cutting shoe soles. The'primary object of lthe invention isA the provision of safety mechanism in combination withV an reciprocating die head, by means of which a number of adjustable, interchangeable, and removable dies may be mounted onl ther-presserface of the die-head, and manipulated with facility, in the single operation of cutting multiple soles from sheet material.

The equipment of my invention includes a minimum number of parts that may with facility be manufactured atlowcostof production and the parts may be assembled and installed with convenience, to provide mechanism that may be handled without danger of injury to the operator of the die press or machine; and the die-head thus equipped is capable of limited mass production of the shoe soles, with accuracy and convenience.

The invention consists in certain novel combinations and arrangements of parts involving the reciprocating die-head and the means for mounting the multiple interchangeable, removable, and adjustable dies, as will hereinafter be described and more specifically pointed out in the appended claim.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated a complete example of a physical embodiment of my invention wherein the parts are combined and arranged in accord with one mode I have devised for the practical application of the principles of my invention. It will be understood that changes and alterations are contemplated and may be made in these exemplifying drawings and mechanical structuresf, within the scope of my claim, without departing from the principles of the invention. Y l

Figure 1 is a front View in elevation showing so much of a reciprocating cross head or die head as is necessary to illustrate the mounting of a die, which is in position for pressing between the head and the bed or cutting block of a conventional machine.

Figure 2 is an end view of the structure of Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is a plan view showing a portion of one of the supporting rails detached from the diehead.

Figure 4 is a perspective assembly view showlil head or die-head l of a vertically reciprocable die' press or power machine, which operates over and' co-acts with a, stationary cutting block or bed'` 2 that is supported vin horizontal position, and' the usual guides 3, 3 are provided for the reciprocable die-head.

The sheet material or stock, from which the multiple soles are to be cut, is placed upon' the top face of the bed, the multiple dies are carried on the' under face of the die-head, and the down stroke of the die head presses the working face of the dies into the sheet material for cutting the multiple soles.

For mounting the dies upon the presser face of the die-head I utilize a pair of laterally spaced longitudinally extending metallic rails or Z-bars 4 and 5 that may be laterally adjusted, transversely of the cross head or die head, to accommodate dies of different lengths, and for this purpose the flat rails are provided with transversely arranged slots 6.

The rails are fashioned with depressed flanges 1 that form integral longitudinally extending shoulders 8 along the adjoining edges of the rails; and thevrails, as best seen in Fig. 2 extend along the front and rear edges of the presser face of the die-head.

ing the manner of holding or supporting the 55 -For adjustably mounting the rails on the presser face of the die-head, the latter is provided with bolts 9 passing through the slots 6, and nuts l0 are threaded on the bolts and clamped against the top of the head for rigidly securing the rails in adjusted position with relation to the presser face of the die-head.

For convenience in shifting, adjusting and arranging the dies, the depressed flanges of the rails are provided with anti-friction rollers l I and wheels l2 that rare journaled at I3 and project slightly above the top surfaces of the flanges l.

The interchangeable, adjustable and removable dies I4 are mounted between the longitudinally extending shoulders 8, 8, of the rails 4 and 5, and the dies, which conform to the shape of the shoe sole, may vary in length, as is indicated in Fig. 4 by the illustration of a die I la that is shorter than the other two dies.

Spaced slightly below the upper face of each die are provided o'ppositely extending holders 01j extensions I and I6 that are adapted to res-tl upon the flanges 1, l, of the rails, or upon the rollers and wheels journaled in these flanges, and the squared ends of these extensions fit neatly against the shoulders 8, 8 of the rails to accurately position the dies.

The end extensions or holders are depressed below the top presser surface II of each die in order that the die-head may press directly upon the die and the cutting face of the die will press against the sheet'of material supported on the bed 2. By this arrangement of parts the pressure of the dieV head on its working stroke is solely against the die, and not transmitted to the holders or extensions I5, I6, that are supported on the rails of the die-head.

For safety and convenience of the operator in manipulating the dies, each die is equipped with a pair of preferably U-shaped handles I8 and I9 that are rigidly attached at opposite ends of the die, and these handles, as seen in Fig. 2 project laterally beyond the opposite front and rear faces of the die head, thus permitting the operators handling of the dies without placing his hands in a danger zone of the die-head.

The two supporting rails may be adjusted toward and away'from each other t0 accommodate dies having different overall lengths, and the 1nterchangeable dies, although having the same overall length, may differ in length for cutting soles of different length. Thus, in Fig. 4 the shorter die I4a is equipped with extensions or holders I5a and I6a that are longer than the holders I5 and I6 of the other dies, in order that the die Ida may be set in proper position on the rails of the die-head. By this interchangeable arrangement multiple dies of uniform size may be utilized on the cross head or die-head, or, if desired the multiple dies may be of different sizes but having a uniform overall length that adapts them to the position of the supporting rails.

The dies may be assembled with convenience through the opposite ends of the guide and supporting rails, shifted easily to proper working position, and after a cutting operation they may be withdrawn from the rails at opposite ends of the die head if and when necessary.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

In a multiple-die cutting machine having a vertically reciprocable cross head and a stationary cutting block, the combination of a pair of longitudinally extending metallic rails laterally spaced on the cross head, means adjust/ably xing said rails to the cross head whereby the spacing between said rails may be varied, flanges attached to said rails and lying in a plane vertically displaced from said rails and the cross head, anti-friction means on said flanges, an adjustable die between said rails and underneath the cross head, extensions from opposite ends of said die and mounted on said anti-friction means whereby said die may be manually adjusted along the length of the cross head.

JOHN F. BARRON.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Mayle Jan. 9, 1934 Number 

